Folks in my community have wondered why I gave up hours and hours of my time organizing for Obama in terms of creating and hosting events, blogging, participating in events, participating in many Saturdays of October and Tuesdays of October phonebanking in a union office, in someone's home, in a condo, in a real estate office, in Century City Plaza hotel, in doorknocking, in dialoguing with folks. Most of my activities were self-driven by my imagination, but mostly my zeal for the candidate. Why did I do what I did?
Creating Events. Most of my events were either done at my home or a nearby bakery. The preparations to host an event include not just cleaning my house, but also making sure that folks have something to eat. And they are eating not popcorn and coke, but something substantial. And each event is created with a them in mind. Why for goodness's sake, no one is grading me? No one is supervising me.
Ah, but my conscience is. All along I wanted my own brand of Obama events to reflect the wholesome goodness that I see in President Elect Obama, the way he respects the crowds, the way he shows his delight at receiving their handshakes and their hugs.
While he is not with me, I am very conscious that I represent him, displaying a full measure of his goodwill and enthusiasm.
Why: Because ever since I have been a citizen of the United States, born and raised in the Philippines for 18 years, my island birthplace has never left my heart. Its people, my people have always exuded their warmths, their affectionate hearts stay open to strangers, friends, and family. That is what I missed the most of my island homeplace and I try to recreate that with every event I had organized for Obama. To some that are not used to seeing that done usually and repeatedly, it left them suspicious, perhaps she herself is running for office, and even taken aback when I introduce myself as a volunteer commissioner. Their suspicion now becomes fullblown, and no longer restrained in others, they approach me and articulate their own inner suspicions " Are you running for office? " And when I say it did not cross my mind as I have no patience for it, they are just left incredulous. Why would that be? Because, we as a nation has been taught and conditioned to be cynical, to be abrupt, to show our darkest selves, to be cold as if James Bond in Quantum of Solace, coldblooded, icequeens and icekings. But, it is not our true selves. It is not who America truly is.
It is why Senator Barack Obama became a shining light for me. I saw his goodness, his goodwill and wherein he regarded folks not as " fat assed consumers of politics, who can be squeezed for every juice of a dollar ", but as smart, thoughtful citizens who he can dialogue with, who he has to earn their respect, who can be educated, who can understand complex issues, as long as all the elements of those political issues are made transparent to the citizens.
I know I am just describing the atmosphere of an event, how did I manage to discuss my origins, my expectations of my political leaders? Because I am not unipolar, nor a unidimensional person. When you consider island folks, we are truly a complex web of intricacies, we are a network of many dimensions, we are a complex array of friendships, family and togetherness, and when we get excited about one thing, we bring in the entire community with that excitement, we talk to them daily, non-stop until they are with us. When we hold a belief, we not only consider ourselves, but each member of our family, each member of our community, where each one is a leader, where each one is a learner, where each one is a teacher, a true full circle and collection of smarts, talents and abilities.
Intellectual Content and Democratic Process. That is what I painstakingly tried to create during the campaign, as soon as I started January 2008. I have not quite stopped doing it. I also wanted the intellectual content to reflect the views of folks who took the time to attend, and more importantly that the process was inclusive and accountable, that each one was thanked for their participation, large or small as contributing to a change in the energy not just in the room, but also in our everyday lives. That we now can smile at each other in the playgrounds, in the parks, in the grocery stores, in the churches, in the movie houses and take the time to talk to our Fedex guy, to our cable guy or even offer a drink to our postman or a banana to our sweating gardener who mows our lawn and we see folks just take the time to be a role model, imitating the goodness they see in the First Family.
So my zeal in the campaign has been transferred to writing daily for a community newspaper, harvesting my fellow community folks' goodness, goodwill and generosity, hoping to immortalize and memorialize them, the unsung, everyday heroes who are rhizomes, whose roots are spread to the thickness of the soil, who stay rooted, yet grow new nodes and stalks that bloom into new flowers, some with fragrance for all of us community folks to enjoy. And my community is becoming larger, no longer just Filpinos, but also amongst my extended family: Chinese, Honduran, Japanese, Blacks and French. Yes, our family is growing since the elections.
Website Shadowed Some, But not ALL. In October, when the website no longer can track my phone banking activities in different field places in Los Angeles, while I searched for who has the best method on the ground floor, I stopped logging as much into the website. And as intense as I got into the campaign, covering even TV programs to explain why Obama, which is not covered in the website, and writing more community newspaper stories, which is also not covered in the website, the irony of all ironies, that is when my ranking of 10 on the mybarackobama.com website declined to 9, one day, and when i asked the basis of that ranking score going down, my score was again diminished to 8. As my ground activities intensified, my website score diminished, which only tells me that scoring kept in the website is no longer reliable and credible. But my conscience reminds me to keep going for my ideals.
Well, guess what folks, my motivation still stayed strong. After all, I did not organize for Obama because of my ego, I self-organized for Obama because I sensed his luminous human spirit, the shine in his character, the shine in how he delights in seeing his family, how he is a very decent person who loves people, how he treats everyone with respect. Of course, he gets testy, and the media writes up about it, particularly when suddenly the children are being included in his media interviews, when he and his wife have not quite precleared and prepared the children. To me, he and his wife are decent parents who do not commercialize their children for their own purposes and respect their privacy and right to say no to public events.
Zeal for Obama not the Democratic Party. And by the way, let it be known to the Obama HQ staff, that Obama inspired me to self-organize, not the Democratic Party who has been recruiting me to get involved for years now, who has yet to have me convinced that the Democratic Party is a genuine, service-oriented party, and it is a party that is beyond multiple selfish agendas of making a candidate win, as that will never be why I will never give up my nights, weekends, days, to simply get someone elected.
I gave up my family time so my family can have a better future, I can now enjoy our holidays this thanksgiving because I know I have installed into office, as 68,900,000 more, a decent man who will put the interests of the American people, the majority of the people first, before his pocketbooks or his future or his legacy, I gave up my precious time to elect a decent MAN OF PRINCIPLES, and let it be known, I am not going to be deceived by pundits, nor taken by decisive instructionns from the top of party leaders who want to use me like I was a piece of merchandise.
You just don't get it, my allegiance and love for this country to reach its American ideals and potentials for inclusive union, and my zeal for principles will not be for sale! For in selling it, I will betray my deepest self and my conscience, who I have to live by and exist with 24/7 all days and all years of my life.
Yes, there are many of us, in fact, perhaps a lot of the more than 68,900,000 voters who pledged them for Obama, you just have to take pause that folks will sacrifice their TIME, TALENTs and TREASUREs to attain an America that has a HEART!!
Yes, it is the heart of a Nation that we are fighting for, not the DEMOCRATIC PARTY and President Elect Barack Obama got it right the first time he ran and because he got it right, we are there for him!
I learned so much in self-organizing for the Obama campaign.
I learned hefty dose of imagination. I do not have a boss that will tell me what to do or not. I knew if I organized an event that is meaningful to the voters, I would get them to come, not because of me, but because of Obama, the candidate. So, I learned to imagine what events would draw them: a walk in the park, a world cafe conversations at a bakery, a meeting on the platform on mentoring, a study group on Audacity of Hope. Some that I organized involved serving food, but in others, I did not. Still, the level of enthusiam was unlike I have encountered before: folks had a natural high, as if they had just finished doing yoga or aerobics or pilates, high in serotonin and quite accomodating of everyone. Except in one meeting, where I encountered a person who was not emotionally present, most were serious, thoughtful and inspiring in their own rights.
And in applying my imagination, I got psychic dividends of meeting great folks and consequently, in a nearby bakery, or a grocery store, where I run into them, it makes us all feel safe and secure in our communities. I suppose this is what Senator Obama spoke of: not just belief in him, but belief in the change we can muster and change we can make happen.
I learned that authenticity carries through all events. For most events, being myself got me through as much as for others. Even as nervous as I was while anticipating folks to arrive, I told myself to trust the process and to trust the folks coming to the event. And they did come. And they came prepared, they came ready to participate, ready to engage, ready to share their perspectives. And it did not matter what age group they were, if the event host and process was accomodating and inclusive of their input, they left their footprints and their marks. The youngest participant I had was a ten year old girl and she drew animated figures cartoons to give life to our ideas. And even the oldest participant shared her viewpoints.
At some meetings, it was usually the young teacher, or the retired artist/writer who imagined clearly the blueprint of change and what it would take for our neighborhood to turn around, it was as if they had their own crystal globe. And invariably, the folks who are positive and had no self-doubts contributed a lot to others, and the folks who had anger issues contributed no more than their anger and negativity. That too became a lesson for me, as i knew I had to be clear within, in my sense of purpose and intentions, for me to navigate each meeting and achieve what I wanted to achieve, a collection of perspectives, a synergy, a consensus, a much better understanding, an energized group of participants more fired up than when they arrived. And, to report about each event to the Obama headquarters after each event also required a special diligence for me.
I learned to be gracious and patient when someone's ego is in full bloom. This is particularly challenging for me particularly in the midst of facilitating a group process, as I usually am doing it with strangers and new friends, and have no inkling as to who is a skilled facilitator. Hence, it is a leap of faith, a healthy dose of trust and I remember how Senator Obama extends a full dose of trust in his staff, and because of that, I am also encouraged to follow his example, by examining, by challenging and by asking one question " How would Senator Obama handle this? " On a critical juncture of a hosted meeting on mentoring, an older gentleman interrupted me while I was facilitating and whispered to me in a harsh tone, " You are doing this wrong ". Mind you, he is not the organizer, he did not advertise the event, he did not create the event, but he had the audacity to tell me I am wrong. But, I dare not disrespect him, so I said, " No worries, it will work out. " And it did, as I simply allowed the group process to move forward.
I learned that I am not the final word on any meeting. By allowing the group a choice on how to proceed, by practicing democracy in action, I gained credibility amongst strangers. For example, one Saturday, it had started to drizzle. So, I was poised to cancel the meeting or postpone it for the next Saturday. But, I was wrong, I miscalculated the enthusiasm of folks who came this one gray, drizzling rain morning. They admonished me that the event is so important for me to cancel, and they requested that we proceed. So, I ran to my car, unloaded my dry erase markers, but in hurrying, I left my portable Post-it flip chart. Luckily, my husband was simply a cell phone away and he hurriedly dropped off the flip chart and we proceeded even as the chairs were partially wet. Folks did not mind the traffic on the sidewalk, folks did not mind the slight drizzle, and this turned out to be the best meeting I had organized, called " world cafe conversations. ". Why: because of the synergy created, in the absence of debate or opposition, folks saw more patterns, folks recognized the insights shared, folks heard the wisdom of what was shared. One participant came from San Diego and she shared " My soul was looking for this type of positive meeting", and she drove 200 miles to get to my hosted meeting, and then said " and my soul is now satisfied!"
That says it all, the campaign provided us a medium, a process, a forum, a space for us to be who we are, to develop the potentials in others, and together, we all grew to appreciate our positive spaces of engagement on behalf of democracy.
Senator Barack Obama, we are blessed by your presidential campaign, we rediscovered our strengths as civic participants in public square of discourse. Thank you for this website for without it, I could not have learned these organizing lessons with folks I met for a year and a half! Take care, and we are praying non-stop for a clean elections, a landslide victory and a renaissance administration that will truly serve the majority of Americans, in our beloved country!!
I'm trying not to be overly optimistic, but was wondering if there are some voters who are telling pollsters they are voting for McCain, but when they get inside the voting booth, might vote for Obama. Maybe they don't want to admit in front of their spouse or whomever when the polling people call, that they have some doubts about McCain. Maybe they are afraid their friends will mock them for not being red-blooded American patriots if they suggest they might vote for Obama. Maybe they don't want people to know that they would actually vote for a black guy. But for any of these reasons, I wouldn't be surprised if there are a lot of closet Obama supporters out there in the heartland--people who know that things are seriously off track in this country, and have grave doubts about John McCain's judgment or temper or ideas or age or whatever.
It seems just as likely that there could be at least as many people like that as there are people who would tell a pollster that they are voting for Obama when they are secretly planning to vote for McCain.
By The Associated Press – 6 hours ago
Excerpts from recent newspaper endorsements of the presidential candidates. The Los Angeles Times endorses Democrat Barack Obama, calling him "educated and eloquent, sober and exciting, steady and mature." The Washington Post calls Obama "the right man for a perilous moment." The Chicago Tribune, endorsing a Democratic presidential nominee for the first time, expresses "tremendous confidence" in Obama's "intellectual rigor, his moral compass and his ability to make sound, thoughtful, careful decisions."
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Los Angeles Times endorsed Democrat Barack Obama on Oct. 17:
... We need a leader who demonstrates thoughtful calm and grace under pressure, one not prone to volatile gesture or capricious pronouncement. We need a leader well-grounded in the intellectual and legal foundations of American freedom. Yet we ask that the same person also possess the spark and passion to inspire the best within us: creativity, generosity and a fierce defense of justice and liberty.
The Times without hesitation endorses Barack Obama for president. ...
We may one day look back on this presidential campaign in wonder. We may marvel that Obama's critics called him an elitist, as if an Ivy League education were a source of embarrassment, and belittled his eloquence, as if a gift with words were suddenly a defect. In fact, Obama is educated and eloquent, sober and exciting, steady and mature. He represents the nation as it is, and as it aspires to be.
El Diario/La Prensa, the largest Spanish-language daily paper in New York City, endorsed Obama on Oct. 17:
... El Diario/La Prensa endorses Sen. Barack Obama as the leader ready to redirect the United States of America towards its promise.
Sen. Obama wisely opposed Bush's misguided and immoral charge into Iraq...
Sen. Obama has correctly identified that trickle-down economics are not addressing the inequities Americans face...
Sen. Obama has committed to investing in schools and to making higher education more accessible.
... While Sen. John McCain once appeared as a reasonable interlocutor on immigration reform, he gradually pandered to Republican ultra conservatives by promoting a two-step process emphasizing border enforcement. Sen. Obama clearly outlines a far superior plan that will take a smarter approach to immigration, including bringing undocumented immigrants out of the shadows.
The Chicago Tribune endorsed Democrat Barack Obama on Oct. 17.
... Many Americans say they're uneasy about Obama... We have known Obama since he entered politics a dozen years ago. We have watched him, worked with him, argued with him as he rose from an effective state senator to an inspiring U.S. senator to the Democratic Party's nominee for president.
We have tremendous confidence in his intellectual rigor, his moral compass and his ability to make sound, thoughtful, careful decisions. He is ready.
When Obama said at the 2004 Democratic Convention that we weren't a nation of red states and blue states, he spoke of union the way Abraham Lincoln did.
... We are proud to add Barack Obama's name to Lincoln's in the list of people the Tribune has endorsed for president of the United States.
The Washington Post endorsed Democrat Barack Obama on Oct. 17:
... It is without ambivalence that we endorse Sen. Barack Obama for president.
The choice is made easy in part by Mr. McCain's disappointing campaign, above all his irresponsible selection of a running mate who is not ready to be president. It is made easy in larger part, though, because of our admiration for Mr. Obama and the impressive qualities he has shown during this long race...
Mr. Obama is a man of supple intelligence, with a nuanced grasp of complex issues and evident skill at conciliation and consensus-building...
Mr. Obama's temperament is unlike anything we've seen on the national stage in many years. He is deliberate but not indecisive; eloquent but a master of substance and detail; preternaturally confident but eager to hear opposing points of view. He has inspired millions of voters of diverse ages and races, no small thing in our often divided and cynical country. We think he is the right man for a perilous moment.
The San Francisco Chronicle endorsed Democrat Barack Obama on Friday, Oct. 17.
... The worst economic crisis since the Great Depression gave Americans an opportunity to see the two major-party candidates under heightened stress...
Sen. John McCain magnified the aura of crisis, "suspending" his campaign to return to Washington, where his role in negotiations was at best tangential. Sen. Barack Obama was a portrait of calmness and deliberation, reminding Americans that it is possible for a leader to juggle more than one task at a time...
The Illinois senator was similarly deliberative — in contrast with McCain's quick-draw provocation — when Russia invaded Georgia in August ...
Obama has kept his composure and maintained a vision of optimism that has drawn an unparalleled wave of young people into the political process. His policies and his persona have offered hope to a nation that is deeply polarized, swimming in debt, mired in war and ridden with anxiety. He taps into that treasured American reservoir — patriotism — with his calls for sacrifice and national service.
Barack Obama is the right president for these troubled times.
Dear Obama Mamas, Friends and Supporters! Please attend a new and exciting play that salutes Barack Obama. "If I Were Obama's Mama" is by an Obama woman, about Obama women and for Obama women and the one's they love. On October 16, 2008 at 8:00pm in Hollywood, Ca, a new play “If I Were Obama’s Mama” will be performed as a benefit for the Obama Presidential campaign. We are inviting you to attend in support of this historical moment. We need all of LA to come out in support. What is the play about? “If I Were Obama’s Mama” presents a simple question: what would the average woman say to Senator Obama if she were his mother? This three-woman cast of his fictional mother and fictional grandmothers are the voices of women nation wide who answer that question. With humor and passion, “If I Were Obama’s Mama” reminds us that putting differences aside is not the answer, fixing differences is. Where will the benefit performance be held? This benefit performance will be held at The Stella Adler Theatre, 6773 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles, Ca 90028 Donations: Directly following the performance donations will be accepted for the Obama campaign. For more info please visit: www.theobamaplay.com Please attend! Let’s show the nation our continuous support of Barack Obama.
The McCain campaign promises to get nasty. Their excuse is that nothing else will work. I mean, what do we expect them to do, talk about their approach to the issues? That will not win them very many votes. No, their only hope is to raise doubts about Barack Obama.
The Obama campaign should respond forcefully, of course, but should continue to resist the urge to engage in mud-slinging in return. That would be just what the McCain campaign wants. No less a political expert than John McCain himself said during the primary campaign (in reference to attacks on him by Mitt Romney), that if you get down in the mud and wrestle with a pig, you are going to get dirty, and the pig likes it!
We need to remember that the politics of hope and change have conquered the politics of hate and fear so far this year, and should continue to be successful on election day.
The Earth is Square, Really, Senator John McCain!!
Senator John McCain's choice of Governor Sarah Palin is like a choice of a person who has lost all his smart marbles! Gov. Palin's contention that man's practices do not contribute to global warming is not unlike a layperson saying the earth is not round, it is square, for documentary upon documentary, including eyewitnesses report that the accumulation of CO2 gases in the air are due to man's increasing carbon footprints. And what does Senator John McCain tell us? He wants to tax our health care plans. Gee, many crickets, this is not just a bad Disney movie, this is like living in earth that is square, but when in fact it is round. It is what Senator McCain wants us to do, to keep bearing the economic burdens from those who must carry their fair shares, to become globally responsible citizens. Senator McCain, let us exchange positions at the moment. Suppose you have an elderly family member, and you need to care for her, and all her available dollars are spent for her meals and rent, with not a single penny to spare, and now the federal government under your administration wants to impose taxes on those? Just so, the federal government can continue to give you and your friends another chunky tax cuts, hefty millions for you and your friends, just plenty enough that you can afford to buy another loft for Meghan, or another Jaguar for your wife, Cindy. Oops, actually, for Cindy to afford another $300,000 outfit for another public event, while my relative has to make a choice between buying her prescription medications or buy her shampoo. Truly Senator McCain, for a person who is aggressive in asserting his faith in God, how unconscionable is it to keep insisting on tax cuts for you and your families and your friends, while those overburdened already are still being asked to carry more? Are you nuts? Or are we nuts in even considering you as our next President? I do not think so, and come November, we will come to our senses and vote common sense into the highest position in US, and elect someone who will extend universal health care, and not tax our health care benefits, the little that we have already!
The only silver lining of the continued crisis on Wall Street is that it is good news for the Obama campaign. With the focus back on serious issues, instead of silliness, the Obama campaign is in a good position to demonstrate that it has real answers to economic questions, while the McCain campaign seems to be doing a good job of demonstrating its continued cluelessness. The challenge is for Obama to be able to communicate these complicated issues clearly, in a way that resonates for people, while at the same time avoiding over-simplification, and without getting too downbeat. We cannot have six more weeks of people worrying whether or not the sky is falling. What we need is a continued message of hope, coupled with some serious talk about some difficult issues.
From the Associated Press
Wednesday September 10, 2008 2:31 AM
AP Photo VADP105< ContentType:Spot Development; ContentElement:FullStory; Breaking:True;
By NEDRA PICKLER
Associated Press Writer
LEBANON, Va. (AP) - What's the difference between the presidential campaign before and after the national political conventions? Lipstick. The colorful cosmetic has become a political buzzword, thanks to Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin's joke in her acceptance speech that lipstick is the only thing that separates a hockey mom like her from a pit bull.
Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama told an audience Tuesday that GOP presidential nominee John McCain says he'll change Washington, but he's just like President Bush.
``You can put lipstick on a pig,'' he said to an outbreak of laughter, shouts and raucous applause from his audience, clearly drawing a connection to Palin's joke even if it's not what Obama meant. ``It's still a pig. You can wrap an old fish in a piece of paper called change. It's still going to stink after eight years.''
McCain's campaign called the comments ``offensive and disgraceful'' and said Obama owes Palin an apology. Obama's campaign said he wasn't referring to Palin and said the GOP camp was engaging in a ``pathetic attempt to play the gender card.'' Obama's camp also noted that McCain once used the same phrase to describe Hillary Rodham Clinton's health care plan.
Obama followed up by saying Palin is an interesting story, drawing boos at the mention of her name that he tried to cut off.
``Look, she's new, she hasn't been on the scene, she's got five kids. And my hat goes off to anybody whose looking after five. I've got two and they tire Michelle and me out,'' he said.
In Virginia, a questioner asked Obama to join Republicans and agree that candidates' families and religion are off limits. Palin's pregnant teenage daughter and the teachings of her church, the nondenominational Wasilla Bible Church, have been the subject of scrutiny since McCain picked her as his running mate.
Obama responded that he already has said families are off limits and he's very protective of his daughters, 10-year-old Malia and 7-year-old Sasha. He said he doesn't want their inevitable future mistakes to become newspaper fodder if he gets to the White House.
Obama also is no stranger to attacks on his religion. He's been the subject of a false rumor campaign saying he's a Muslim, and the racially tinged sermons of his longtime former preacher caused problems for his campaign earlier this year.
He stressed that he's a Christian and ``so the fact that Gov. Palin is deeply religious, that's a good thing.'' He said poking around in her religion or saying it's wrong is ``offensive'' and he wants to have a debate about the issues.
``But don't give people some sort of religious litmus test because I don't want somebody to question my faith and I'm certainly not going to question somebody else's,'' he said.
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On the Net:
Obama: http://www.barackobama.com
It's not like you are going to convince any of the delegates of anything. So your audience must be the people watching on TV. But who is going to be sympathetic to the demonstrators' position? I think only those who are already sympathetic. Those on the fence are more likely to side with the police. Let's remember that the riots outside the Democratic convention in 1968 only helped Richard Nixon win the election, even though the police tactics in dealing with the demonstrators were horrific. Most people watching on tv are turned off by disorder, and sympathize with the forces of law and order.
I think a more effective type of demonstration would be to pretend you are a Republican and carry signs that take their positions to a logical extreme, a la Steven Colbert. For example, Shoot all illegal immigrants; or Death penalty for all abortion providers; or Bomb Iran. The news might pick up signs like that, and that would perhaps help advance the cause of showing that Republicans are nut jobs.
When we pay too much attention to the superficial characteristics of political candidates, such as gender or skin color, we end up with a Clarence Thomas on the Supreme Court, and a Sarah Palin as vice-presidential candidate. Sure it is about time we had a female president, but the choice of Sarah Palin shows that it is very dangerous to make the argument that Hillary Clinton sometimes made, that people should vote for her because it is about time we had a female president. Once you make that argument, you are encouraging the Republicans to run a Sarah Palin. Sarah Palin is dangerous not only because she might actually help McCain win, but also because she encourages people to think that issues don't matter, and knowledge doesn't matter. Not to mention that her views on the issues are as right wing as they come. The funny thing is that the Republicans are now falling over themselves arguing that she is knowledgeable and experienced enough to be president, after they have spent months saying that a President of the Harvard Law Review, community organizer, lawyer, constitutional law professor, state legislator and US Senator was not qualifed to be president. So the experience argument is out the window, but now the Republicans will be seeking to make the campaign solely about personalities, and the likeable qualities of their candidates. And who doesn't adore the grandfatherly McCain, beside the cute and fresh young energetic new face?
Note that Barack Obama never suggests that people should vote for him because of his skin color, even though in light of the central issues in American history of 250 years of slavery and 100 years of legalized discrimination against black people, it will be at least as historically significant to elect a black person president as a woman. He has to continue to focus on substance, and hope that people will make a decision based on substance and not superficiality.
Are you ready for change? ( Series 2 ) By Prosy Abarquez-Delacruz, J.D.Third Day: The history-making Nomination Process, America’s Future"America is a place where what holds you back are temporary, not permanent barriers", Rep. Artur Davis said as he seconded the nomination of Barack Obama. He was joined by Honorable Ken Salazar and Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz of Florida. Then, the Roll Call Nominating Process was started by Alice Travis Germond, who called on the 36 states, with 2210 votes needed for nomination. Arkansas, Delaware, New Hampshire, New Jersey declared all their available votes for Senator Barack Obama. Shared states that gave most votes to Obama, with a few to Hillary, include: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Democrats Abroad, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachussetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico. When California passed with 441 votes, I was worried a bit, but sensed the acclamation was forthcoming. New Jersey declared all 127 votes for Obama and spontaneous chants of Yes, We Can erupted. Hillary’s tally was 341.5 votes and Barack Obama was 1,616.5 votes. New Mexico with 36 votes, then yielded to Illinois, with 185 votes, then yielded to New York, almost like a torch relay of the Olympics. New York had 282 votes to either declare for Senator Hillary Clinton or Senator Barack Obama. In a show of unity, Senator Hillary Clinton, surrounded by Sen. Charles Schumer, Charles Rangel, and other New York delegates called for the suspension of the rules and procedures, and declared “He is our candidate and he will be our president” , and made a motion that all votes cast by the delegates, now counted, be set aside, and to have Senator Barack Obama, by acclamation be declared as the Democratic Party’s nominee for President of the United States. Seconded by a rousing crowd. “All in favor….aye, ayes, two – thirds of the delegates having voted in the affirmative, it is carried!! Officially, Senator Barack Obama became the Democratic Party nominee”. Democracy in the Democratic Party solidified, and now the power of nomination truly rested in the hands of the voters who cast votes in their states, and by acclamation, 2/3 of the 15,000 delegates in attendance. What a rousing historical moment! I looked at my arms and felt the goosebumps. I viewed Hillary Clinton then as a unifier, a person who put her party first, but mostly her nation to come together behind this soon to be elected President Barack Obama. I also salute the actions of Barack Obama who provided the space for this first woman presidential candidate to claim her righteous place in history, a space to memorialize what she gained in an effort to unify the Party on principled grounds, a higher sacred ground of what is true history.Who would think that numbers can electrify ? Who would think that numbers can unify? It was the tone, it was the graciousness on both sides, it was the give and take, it was negotiation and democracy prevailed. In 2008, while gender was trumped, equality, unity, and harmony became the highest social values to define a new Democratic Party as ONE, and soon, AMERICA as one nation under President Barack Obama. It was electrifying, it was unifying, and one African American delegate profusely cried while this historic vote by acclamation occurred: a woman nominated to the highest position in office, who then called for acclamation, the nomination of the first African American to be the Party's presidential nominee, a party that elevated principles of every vote counted, women's place respected and a unifying African American candidate. And guess what, just as the Divine Source is having a swell time challenging us to go beyond our fears, it is now being reported that the Latinos will determine this presidential election. So, we need not stay confined in the English only voting states, but now, we need to cross borders, learn another language and say, not just " Si, Se Puede " but also " todos somos unidos" , "All are united " behind Barack Obama. “History is progressive”, in the words of my deceased friend, Dr. Boone Schirmer. He believed that progressives inched us closer to realize the potential of our generation, ever closer to realizing our humanity.
And tonight, I witnessed Senator Hillary Clinton and Senator Barack Obama be the progressive leaders who moved the struggle of parity by women, and in her own words, their strength manifested in 18,000,000 cracks in the glass ceiling. Soon, that glass ceiling will crumble and make way perhaps for her daughter, a Chelsea Clinton for President.
I was moved to see Native Americans from Montana attending the convention for the first time, as well as cattle ranchers and farmers as first time delegates. We are coming together as a nation to repair the walls that divided us, to repair the breaches and to make those invisible, now visible and actively participating. And in rousing music, folks held hands and broke out in smiles. The spirit of connections engulfed the delegates. As the music got louder, with hands clasped, delegates became more joined in aspirations. Join hands…start the love train…join hands…start the love train…..this got me more goosebumps as I could not help my own tears and see the beginnings of how America repair its breach and unify all within this party, and soon, into ONE NATION.-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Rep. Nancy Pelosi declared that “100 years ago, first 5 women delegates were from Denver, Colorado”. Now, progress stares at us, as majority of the 15,000 delegates in the Democratic Party convention are women. It touched me to see my gender represented, a parade of staunch congressional representatives, but it also made me sad that except for one Asian woman, Rep. Doris Matsui, there were no other Asian women, and more starking, not a single Filipina woman congressional representative! I wonder if any of the Fifth Avenue women entrepreneurs: Lilia Clemente, Josie Natori or Loida Nicolas-Lewis might consider public service as a selfless service to the country that made them successful businesswomen? “We can no longer afford the toxic mix of oil and war, according to Senator Harry Reid. He said that Third World thugs are being financed as we pump gas and pay utility bills. In 1970s, President Jimmy Carter even then warned us of this forthcoming energy crisis, but was laughed at by the Republicans back then. For the past decade, he declared that 4 oil executives have become our presidents and vice-president who conspired with their oil cronies and delivered dollars by the ton to Iran, Venezuela, Saudi Arabia. Our current president helped his friends through out and out corruption and oil profiteering, he said. There is an answer, Senator Reid claims, if only a person speaks truth to power. There is an answer, he said, it is Barack Obama. 25 young American Heroes came to the stage with Rep. Patrick Murphy of Pennsylvania. “ We need a change not just ending the war in Iraq, but also the soldiers here in home. We have a president who spent billions in war but not enough for body armor. It is time for a president we can be proud of. It is time for President Barack Obama ”. Former 42 nd President William Jefferson Clinton came on stage, after being introduced by Kendrick Meek from Florida. He presided over 22 million jobs, the highest home ownership, and record budget surplus in the trillions. After five minute standing ovation and he said, “ I love this but, we have some important work to do. I am honored to be here tonight to support Barack Obama. And to warm up the crowd for Joe Biden,though as you’ll soon see, he doesn’t need any help from me. I love Joe Biden, and America will too.
The primary began with an all-star line up and came down to two remarkable Americans locked in a hard fought contest to the very end. The campaign generated so much heat it increased global warming. In the end, my candidate didn’t win. Hillary told us in no uncertain terms that she’ll do everything she can to elect Barack Obama. That makes two of us. Actually that makes 18 million of us – because, like Hillary, I want all of you who supported her to vote for Barack Obama in November.Here’s why. Our nation is in trouble on two fronts: The American Dream is under siege at home, and America’s leadership in the world has been weakened. Middle class and low-income Americans are hurting, with incomes declining; job losses, poverty and inequality rising; mortgage foreclosures and credit card debt increasing; health care coverage disappearing; and a big spike in the cost of food, utilities, and gasoline. Our position in the world has been weakened by too much unilateralism and too little cooperation; a perilous dependence on imported oil; a refusal to lead on global warming; a growing indebtedness and a dependence on foreign lenders; a severely burdened military; a backsliding on global non-proliferation and arms control agreements; and a failure to consistently use the power of diplomacy, from the Middle East to Africa to Latin America to Central and Eastern Europe.
In no uncertain terms, he declared the traits required of a president and almost to certify to the voters, those traits are in Barack Obama. I felt some healing of breaches here, when a Caucasian president looked at a person of color’s strengths instead of the racialized norm or the cultural practice of finding deficiencies.
I felt proud as a Democrat tonight for my values were reflected in the party and the party’s values were aligned with mine, a synchrony that I am experiencing for the first time, after voting in five presidential elections.
Clearly, the job of the next President is to rebuild the American Dream and restore America’s standing in the world. Everything I learned in my eight years as President and in the work I’ve done since, in America and across the globe, has convinced me that Barack Obama is the man for this job.He has a remarkable ability to inspire people, to raise our hopes and rally us to high purpose. He has the intelligence and curiosity every successful President needs. His policies on the economy, taxes, health care and energy are far superior to the Republican alternatives. He has shown a clear grasp of our foreign policy and national security challenges, and a firm commitment to repair our badly strained military. His family heritage and life experiences have given him a unique capacity to lead our increasingly diverse nation and to restore our leadership in an ever more interdependent world. The long, hard primary tested and strengthened him. And in his first presidential decision, the selection of a running mate, he hit it out of the park. Barack Obama also will not allow the world’s problems to obscure its opportunities. Everywhere, in rich and poor countries alike, hardworking people need good jobs; secure, affordable healthcare, food, and energy; quality education for their children; and economically beneficial ways to fight global warming. These challenges cry out for American ideas and American innovation. When Barack Obama unleashes them, America will save lives, win new allies, open new markets, and create new jobs for our people. Most important, Barack Obama knows that America cannot be strong abroad unless we are strong at home. People the world over have always been more impressed by the power of our example than by the example of our power. The choice is clear. The Republicans will nominate a good man who served our country heroically and suffered terribly in Vietnam. He loves our country every bit as much as we all do. As a Senator, he has shown his independence on several issues. But on the two great questions of this election, how to rebuild the American Dream and how to restore America’s leadership in the world, he still embraces the extreme philosophy which has defined his party for more than 25 years, a philosophy we never had a real chance to see in action until 2001, when the Republicans finally gained control of both the White House and Congress. Then we saw what would happen to America if the policies they had talked about for decades were implemented.They took us from record surpluses to an exploding national debt; from over 22 million new jobs down to 5 million; from an increase in working family incomes of $7,500 to a decline of more than $2,000; from almost 8 million Americans moving out of poverty to more than 5 and a half million falling into poverty – and millions more losing their health insurance. They actually want us to reward them for the last eight years by giving them four more. Let’s send them a message that will echo from the Rockies all across America: Thanks, but no thanks. In this case, the third time is not the charm.My fellow Democrats, sixteen years ago, you gave me the profound honor to lead our party to victory and to lead our nation to a new era of peace and broadly shared prosperity. Together, we prevailed in a campaign in which the Republicans said I was too young and too inexperienced to be Commander-in-Chief. Sound familiar? It didn’t work in 1992, because we were on the right side of history. And it won’t work in 2008, because Barack Obama is on the right side of history.
Since I’ve never been called a man of few words, let me say this as simply as I can: Yes. Yes, I accept your nomination to run and serve alongside our next President of the United States of America, Barack Obama.
With a dad who fell on hard economic times, but who always told me: “Champ, when you get knocked down, get up. Get up.” I wish that my dad was here tonight, but I am so grateful that my mom, Catherine Eugenia Finnegan Biden, is here. You know, she taught her children—all the children who flocked to our house—that you are defined by your sense of honor, and you are redeemed by your loyalty. She believes bravery lives in every heart and her expectation is that it will be summoned.Failure at some point in everyone’s life is inevitable, but giving up is unforgivable. As a child I stuttered, and she lovingly told me it was because I was so bright I couldn’t get the thoughts out quickly enough. When I was not as well dressed as others, she told me how handsome she thought I was. When I got knocked down by guys bigger than me, she sent me back out and demanded that I bloody their nose so I could walk down that street the next day.After the accident, she told me, “Joey, God sends no cross you cannot bear.” And when I triumphed, she was quick to remind me it was because of others. My mother’s creed is the American creed: No one is better than you. You are everyone’s equal, and everyone is equal to you. My parents taught us to live our faith, and treasure our family. We learned the dignity of work, and we were told that anyone can make it if they try.
* Should mom move in with us now that dad is gone? * Fifty, sixty, seventy dollars to fill up the car? * Winter’s coming. How we gonna pay the heating bills? * Another year and no raise? * Did you hear the company may be cutting our health care? * Now, we owe more on the house than it’s worth. How are we going to send the kids to college? * How are we gonna be able to retire?
And in the Senate, John sided with President Bush 95 percent of the time. Give me a break. When John McCain proposes $200 billion in new tax breaks for corporate America, $1 billion alone for just eight of the largest companies, but no relief for 100 million American families, that’s not change; that’s more of the same.Even today, as oil companies post the biggest profits in history—a half trillion dollars in the last five years—he wants to give them another $4 billion in tax breaks. But he voted time and again against incentives for renewable energy: solar, wind, biofuels. That’s not change; that’s more of the same.He voted 19 times against raising the minimum wage. For people who are struggling just to get to the next day, that’s not change; that’s more of the same.And when he says he will continue to spend $10 billion a month in Iraq when Iraq is sitting on a surplus of nearly $80 billion, that’s not change; that’s more of the same.
Now, despite being complicit in this catastrophic foreign policy, John McCain says Barack Obama isn’t ready to protect our national security. Now, let me ask you: whose judgment should we trust? Should we trust John McCain’s judgment when he said only three years ago, “Afghanistan—we don’t read about it anymore because it’s succeeded”? Or should we trust Barack Obama, who more than a year ago called for sending two additional combat brigades to Afghanistan?The fact is, al-Qaida and the Taliban—the people who actually attacked us on 9/11—have regrouped in those mountains between Afghanistan and Pakistan and are plotting new attacks. And the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff echoed Barack’s call for more troops.John McCain was wrong. Barack Obama was right.Should we trust John McCain’s judgment when he rejected talking with Iran and then asked: What is there to talk about? Or Barack Obama, who said we must talk and make it clear to Iran that its conduct must change.Now, after seven years of denial, even the Bush administration recognizes that we should talk to Iran, because that’s the best way to advance our security. Again, John McCain was wrong. Barack Obama was right.Our greatest presidents—from Abraham Lincoln to Franklin Roosevelt to John Kennedy—they all challenged us to embrace change. Now, it’s our responsibility to meet that challenge.Millions of Americans have been knocked down. And this is the time as Americans, together, we get back up. Our people are too good, our debt to our parents and grandparents too great, our obligation to our children is too sacred.These are extraordinary times. This is an extraordinary election. The American people are ready. I’m ready. Barack Obama is ready. This is his time. This is our time. This is America’s time.May God bless America and protect our troops.
"A garden of divided dreams once before, now a garden of converged dreams, of individual stories coming together, of the conviction of what is possible, hammered into the language of our souls, that cannot be stopped, that cannot be denied, paddling ourselves in the present, now the future already in the past, their sounds echo in the hearts of the listerners, yet inspite all, a humility that we must pass on, a humility that sky is the limit. " Tocar y Luchar's Claudio Abado.
"Rhythm is the internal pulse of the soul, invisibly transmitted to others, the art of making will, to generate a message, to generate a value, an elevation that God reveals something, not penetrated by rationality, but to recognize ourselves in the essence, in the being, a bearer of beauty, truth." Tocar y Lucha's Claudio Abado.
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Fast forward 8 years later, after Obama/Biden has been elected into office with landslides unheard of in America's prior presidential elections. Yet, it is not their ascendancy into power, but it is how their human harmony has been personified in how they operate, as if synchronized duets of an orchestra, filling in the gaps for one another, yet standing firm in their individual strengths, and recapturing what were once elusive dreams, to now America's realities, not ever imagined as possible.
After watching them speak of the character strengths of one another and how intimately they know of the struggles their parents and grandparents went through, I knew then that America has started to change for the better. For it is in their human stories harmonized, reflecting what is not just the best about America: the pursuit of what is possible, projecting the future into the present as probable, but transforming adversity into its opposite, giving us more hope.
It was not just their human harmonies personified, but of how together they imagined a new future for our children. That created such excitement for me, for it was no longer about how tough enough they both are, or of how they have testosterone exponential to the nth power, as a team capable of nuking other nations, to stand them down and heed America' s leadership, but of how both truly cared and connected with our children, with what they need, with how they felt, and with what ordinary middle class working families are going through whether here in America or overseas. This is the team that I believe will carry a remarkable fingerprint in eternity that we will be so proud of, for we were, or better yet, we are part of a movement of change they led with and for us!
America will soon be the birthplace of something more remarkable than we can even imagine possible, all because we transformed what was once America's dark soul into a much brighter soul and where racism is no longer in our genes being passed down to the next generation, but in 2008, in November 4, America chose to reverse its intergenerational legacy of divisions along race, politics, gender, religion and sexual orientation, and instead relayed the foundation of its new legacy of including, of opening up, of being transparent with its national governance policies and practices and unified "its red and blue states into one United States of America".
America's moment has arrived, it is now healing the dark aspects of its soul and humanizing itself from the inside out, and its federal government is leading practices not just in green energies, but wholesome trade with equal partner-nations, and diplomacy its preferred mode of engagement with other countries. This is why I got so excited at these prospects after watching the Obama/Biden team tonight.
" Begin the process of changing the politics…Turn away from profit-based values to American human values… Need, not Greed" David Friedman Days ago was my birthday. I have not been given a birthday party by my father, who was orphaned young when his parents were killed by the Japanese Imperial Army. Instead of teaching us bitterness and hatred, he taught us generosity to others. So, since 6 years old, I was taught service to others before myself first. Hence, on this day of my birth, 56 years later, I searched within and found the best birthday gift: to serve sandwiches, fruit tarts to Obama supporters and have a meeting about the Audacity of Hope, instead of expecting gifts for me from family and friends. I had an array of paper wrapped tuna sandwiches on focacia bread with pickles and egg, and next to it was a brown box filled with financier ( almond teacakes eaten by French bankers in the afternoon ), mini-chocolate chip cookies, minifruit tarts with grapes, kiwi, strawberries and tuxedo-glazed chocolate covered strawberries. I gave $150 to my favorite bakery and requested an array of goodies to feed Obama supporters, most I would just meet for the first time. And the owner, quite generous gave me more value for my budgeted amount. She ended up giving me food enough to feed 20 more, so folks took home sandwiches for dinner. What has that got to do with American democracy? Well, to a large extent, it is about giving service to others, it is about creating space for others to engage in, to exchange ideas. And exchanged we did. It lasted a whole two hours for us.
_______________________________________________________________________________________A couple came, formerly lived in Hawaii, one is a painter and another is a social worker, they exuded a certain sense of calm and later, I found out they too have been getting out of their comfort zones, attending meetings in a Nigerian house, to a gay community church in West Hollywood and now to my eclectic home. Another came who is a judicial assistant and is my neighbor practically, a talented photographer who too has gone out of her comfort zone and attended Japanese but also Filipino events. Another is a very young single woman from Indiana, whose luminescence is sparkling and infectious, she could not contain her excitement about reading Audacity of Hope. She realizes that Obama listens even to opposing viewpoints, such that his leadership shines through. Another shared what she liked about the campaign, of " Obama's affinity with the underserved and the overtaxed citizens". His website opens the community to connection, sharing and community service opportunities. As we moved around the table, another shares how "Obama is flexible, open to new perspectives, which looks, to a few, like flip-flopping. The truth is, he is intelligent and welcomes responding to complex issues with nuanced ideas." Another spoke of " media being biased and cultivates an atmosphere of general fear for its viewers and readers. "And as Obama supporters, we must beat " this inertia of fear " by activating ourselves, being engaged, face this fear of others by being sharing information about our candidate, what does he stand for, what is his tax plan? " Another shared about reaching " new voters, harvesting the good fruit of democracy, and be aware of how we communicate messages " Do you register them to vote for the other candidate, or do you register them to vote for Obama and make it clear why you are for Obama? " Some believe that their votes do not count so patiently share why it does and when it does, the country improves. Share some historical facts that the last time 80% of Americans voted was in the 1960s, during the Kennedy eras, so it is time to recapture the democratic majority to vote in our elections. Another came in and seemed high, having her own meeting, separate from the rest, sharing mostly what her family has done in Kentucky and how she comes from the " Kennedys of Kentucky ". She shared a lot, but not reflecting what the meeting was about: Audacity of Hope book discussion. The group made space for her sharing. Another shared the need for America to be a global economy, able to compete and even catch up to India and China. Education is so important, that it must be accessible to all. It must be improved. The public school system is too bureaucratic. Another shared a charter school, Synergy Charter School whose student performance scores now exceed Brentwood Science Magnet, whose school population is made up of predominantly Latino and African American children growing these "kids as scholars, artists, writers and scientists. ", a charter school that is a model of true education. The group made a laundry list of what Obama campaign must do:a. Do more town hall meetings with folks. Publicize these meetings on the Obama website, youtube, facebook, myspace, other alternate venues, other than CNN. b. We must be a healthy nation, focus more on health care and education. c. Redo the tax code, eliminate the leakages of federal monies to industries that create overseas jobs for cheaper sources of labor. Invest more federal jobs in innovation for the environment. d. Get out of Iraq and have Iraq pay now for its own reconstruction, it has billions in surplus monies to afford it, we have a trillion deficit and we cannot afford it. e. Build schools in Afghanistan to combat terrorism, extremism survives with ignorance. f. Go Green in federal policies and have the federal government be the exemplary leader in green practices. g. Sensible immigration reform, support creating jobs in border countries, like Mexico and while strengthening the relations, also support worker exchange programs to benefit both countries. h. We must prepare ourselves also to deserve a leader like Obama: to be engaged, caring young, and not so youngvoters.i. Spread a populist message to increase aspirations amongst the "have-nots", that following the example of Obama's mother who imagined a new life out of poverty, who cared for the underserved, whose heart was open to new possibilities, and created microfinancing for other poor working women in Indonesia, when it was not now the popular program being advanced by Grameen bank in Bangla Desh, and the aspiration broadened to more than " survive, and feed families" but creating gateways to active citizenship, just like what Canada does. j. Think of schoolhouses as community centers, where the community can congregate for new ideas, where the children are mentored by retired folks, where the children are exposed to new ideas, to new trends, where it becomes the birthplace of new cultural trends, instead of television. The Meeting was convened by Prosy Abarquez-Delacruz, and it was attended by: David Friedman, Joan Schumacher, Sabrina Carmichael, Chris Oshima, Mary "Mia" Isaac and Noemi Tracy. This was summarized by the convener, based on notes taken by David Friedman.
I give David Gergen a lot of credit for being honest enough to say exactly what is going on with the Republican Party strategy for attacking Barack Obama. On one of the news shows over the weekend, he said that as a Southerner he understands the sub-text of the ads McCain is running lately. It comes down to this: Barack Obama is uppity. He doesn't know his place.
This kind of attack is the only thing the Republicans seem to have to throw at Barack Obama. They are directly appealing to the insecurities and fears of white people, especially the fear that people who look different from whites, whether they be blacks or Asians or Mexicans or Jews or whatever, are going to rise up and take away white peoples' jobs and culture and women.
Particularly since Barack Obama was at the top of his class at Harvard Law School, and dresses well, and speaks well, he is vulnerable to this kind of resentment. He is like the kind of Negro that Sidney Poitier used to play in Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, or In the Heat of the Night. Some people are always going to hate that kind of character precisely because he is smarter than everyone else, and more handsome, and better spoken.
How else to deal with these kinds of attacks other than to expose them for what they are? And how to conquer the fears and resentments of people who are susceptible to the kinds of subtle racist messages we are starting to see? I think Obama just has to keep doing what he has been doing, and hope that by the end of the movie, the sheriff will finally start to appreciate Virgil Tibbs.
By Jeff Yang, Special to SF Gate
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
"White skin notwithstanding, this is our first black president. Blacker than any actual black person who could ever be elected in our children's lifetime. After all, he displays almost every trope of blackness: single-parent household, born poor, working-class, saxophone-playing, McDonald's-and-junk-food-loving boy from Arkansas."
With these words in the New Yorker in 1998, Toni Morrison granted our 42nd president, William Jefferson Clinton, a kind of cadet membership in the grand cultural narrative of black America. While her intent was never to make him out as a role model, her essay nevertheless reflected how implausible, how impossibly distant the idea of an African American occupant in the Oval Office seemed at the time.
Morrison couldn't have known that, exactly a decade later, her assertion would be given the lie: We now face the very real prospect in Barack Obama of an "actual black person" being elected president — though one whose own cultural narrative is so unique and complicated that some would argue it has as many contrasts as commonalities with that of the average black American.
In fact, reading Obama's absorbing 1995 memoir "Dreams from My Father," it strikes me that the tropes that surround and define Obama can just as easily be read as those of another community entirely. Which raises the question: Could it be that our true first black president might also be our first Asian American president?
Fitting the curve
He was born and raised in Hawaii, the only majority-Asian state in the union; he spent four formative years in Jakarta, the home of his Indonesian stepfather Lolo Soetoro, where he attended local schools and learned passable Bahasa Indonesia. The family with whom he's closest — half-sister Maya Soetoro-Ng and her Chinese Canadian husband, Konrad Ng — are Asian American. So, too, are the most senior members of his congressional team — his Senate chief of staff Pete Rouse, whose mother is Japanese American, and his legislative director Chris Lu, whose parents hail from Taiwan.
Evidence for Obama's affinity with the Asian American experience runs true even as one delves deeper into his history. "A lot of aspects of the senator's story will be recognizable to many Asian Americans," says Lu, a Harvard Law School classmate of the senator's who joined the team in 2005. "He talks about feeling like somewhat of an outsider; about coming to terms with his self-identity; about figuring out how to reconcile the values from his unique heritage with those of larger U.S. society. These are tensions and conflicts that play out in the lives of all children of immigrants."
And how he talks about those tensions could be rote recital from the Asian American literary canon. With minor search-and-replace, much of the first half of "Dreams" could have been excerpted from an Asian American coming-of-age work, like Gus Lee's "China Boy," Gene Yang's "American Born Chinese," or Michael Kang's "The Motel."
For instance, Obama recalls how, on his first day at school in Hawaii, his well-intentioned teacher made a point of complimenting him on his beautiful, alien name, waxing on about the fantastical magnificence of Kenya, and asking "what tribe" his father was from — thereby condemning young Barack (classmate: "I thought your name was Barry!") to the status of outsider, foreigner, weirdo.
"I heard titters break across the room," writes Obama. "I spent the rest of the day in a daze ... The novelty of having me in the class quickly wore off for the other kids, although my sense that I didn't belong continued to grow ... Most of my classmates had been together since kindergarten; they lived in the same neighborhoods, in split-level homes with swimming pools; their fathers coached the same Little League teams; their mothers sponsored the bake sales. Nobody played soccer or badminton or chess, and I had no idea how to throw a football in a spiral or balance on a skateboard."
And he talks about how, as he grew older, he began to realize that his pervasive sense of difference extended beyond the mere purgatory of elementary school. "TV, movies, the radio ... Pop culture was color-coded, after all," he writes. "I began to notice that Cosby never got the girl on 'I Spy,' that the black man on 'Mission: Impossible' spent all his time underground. I noticed that there was nobody like me in the Sears, Roebuck Christmas catalog ... and that Santa was a white man."
By the time Obama talks about his remote father's outsized academic expectations for him ("Have I told you that your brothers and sister have also excelled in their schooling? It's in the blood, I think"; "Barry, you do not work as hard as you should ... If the boy has done his work for tomorrow, he can begin on his next day's assignments. Or the assignments he will have when he returns from the holidays") and about his overprotective mother's use of guilt as leverage ("A healthy dose of guilt never hurt anybody," she tells him, "It's what civilization was built on, guilt. A highly underrated emotion") the Asian American reader's feelings of deja vu will have slipped from amusing to uncanny.
Translating identity
But even if Obama's personal narrative reads like it was written to an Asian American template, why should that matter? The fact is, understanding this dimension of his makeup offers critical insights to how his outlook and political sensibilities were forged, even providing explanation for some of his more controversial positions, such as his charge to black America about the crises of disengaged parenting and broken families.
"The senator often talks about the importance of education, the value of hard work, and the need for a sense of personal responsibility," says Chris Lu. "That resonates with a lot of Asian Americans, who feel they've pulled themselves up by their bootstraps, and understand the notion that what we accomplish in life is in large part a measure of who we are as people, and how hard we strive."
To some African American leaders, notably the Rev. Jesse Jackson, Obama's continued reminders of the duty of parents to their children and citizens to their society sound elitist and patronizing. To Asian Americans, they sound ... well, they sound familiar. They're at the core of the ethical foundation many of us have inherited, that fusion of post-Confucian philosophy and immigrant ethos the media often calls "Asian values." Aspiration tempered with pragmatism. Strenuous effort and rigorous accountability as the bedrock of success. Moderation in all things, humility in times of triumph, patience in periods of tribulation.
This is a point often missed by those who have assessed Obama at face value, seeing in him a fiery street preacher or a bright-eyed idealist, an iconoclast or an ideologue, and expressed disillusionment with what they see as "triangulation" or "pandering" in some of his recent positions. The people who know him best say that the senator is nothing if not consistent — that throughout his career and campaign he has stayed true, if you will, to his Asian American roots.
The coat of many colors
Calling Obama the first Asian American president doesn't obscure or invalidate his other identities — black, white, multiracial, transnational, pancultural. If anything, it simply highlights the fact that his diverse heritage uniquely invites those around him to project on him a full spectrum of hopes and dreams.
"He's basically a human Rorschach test," says Lu. "African Americans think, and rightfully so, that this is a guy who understands their experience. But it's similar if you talk to Latinos and Asian Americans, or to our 22-year-old field organizers. People see in him the qualities they want to see."
The important thing to note is that this isn't a case of "either/or," but "and." Perhaps the way to read Obama was best pointed out by another black man of mixed heritage, another pioneer whose arrival on a heretofore lily-white landscape shook the firmament. If we are all Tiger Woods, there's no reason we can't all be Barack Obama. We are the world's foremost Cablinasian nation, and in an increasingly flat and unbounded global landscape, this is not a weakness, but our greatest competitive strength.
"It's amusing watching people come up with these caricatures suggesting he's not American," notes Lu. "He's not only American, his story is the quintessential American story. It's the story that our nation is all about."
The prompt for writing this piece, which I've been musing on for a while, was my recent attendance at the UNITY Journalists of Color convention in Chicago. Given the event and location, it wasn't entirely unexpected that Barack Obama was scheduled to speak at the conference; similarly, it wasn't entirely unexpected that a similar invitation extended to John McCain was rejected. Obama was speaking on home turf, to an audience of familiar faces. McCain would have been out of his element and almost certain to face tough questions about immigration, affirmative action, gay adoption, even his past use of the term "gook" to refer to Asian Americans. So, Obama appeared on his own, in a brief, CNN-simulcast interview by CNN correspondent Suzanne Malveaux and Time magazine world editor Romesh Ratnesar. The organizers of the convention went to great pains to ask attendees to demonstrate "professional decorum" by resisting the urge to treat Obama with anything but polite respect; unsurprisingly, coverage of his talk focused more on the audience and its reaction than on the substance of his remarks.
In fact, Obama did get a brief standing ovation — though far less sustained and extreme than the White House Correspondents Association regularly grants the President and other key subjects of their coverage each year. Which brings up the question of double standards. Did journalistic standards demand that attendees sit stoicly in their seats? Was a slap on the wrist warranted for those moved to clap on their feet? The question rests on the notion that being moved by a person's remarks — or grateful for his presence — at a single event is a sign of a conspiracy to compromise basic fairness in reporting. That seems bogus — even offensive.
If the abundantly collegial nature of "mainstream" events like the WHCA gala is given a free pass, focusing on UNITY's reaction to Obama is a blanket assertion that minority journalists are less mature, less conscientious, less dedicated to their craft than their white counterparts. It's particularly ridiculous when one considers that journalists of color make up a tiny fraction of the political press corps — people who would actually be covering the campaign. And the ones who are covering it know they're under a microscope, and thus they're likely to be even more self-aware and restrained in their work than their colleagues. Finally, as far as balance is concerned, no one seems to have written a line about the fact that McCain refused to attend, despite being a few states away in Ohio at the time (while Obama, meanwhile, flew overnight from Europe to make it to the event). McCain has made his willingness to face tough issues and buck expectations a core part of his political persona. Even if he saw UNITY as hostile territory, well, it would have been a mark of courage — and possibly a way of redirecting attention away from Obama's barnstorming world tour — had he attended; it would also have emphasized his desire to truly be a president for all Americans. But, like the WHCA, he faced nary a question. Does the burden of proof in these cases rest solely on the shoulders of people of color?
Jeff Yang forecasts global consumer trends for the market-research company Iconoculture (www.iconoculture.com). He is the author of "Once Upon a Time in China: A Guide to the Cinemas of Hong Kong, Taiwan and Mainland China," co-author of "I Am Jackie Chan: My Life in Action" and "Eastern Standard Time," and editor of the forthcoming "Secret Identities: The Asian American Superhero Anthology" (www.secretidentities.org). He lives in New York City. Go to http://altreviews.com/cgi-bin/dada/mail.cgi to join INSTANT YANG, Jeff Yang's biweekly mailing list offering updates on this column and alerts about other breaking Asian / Asian American pop-culture news, or connect with him on Facebook: www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1074720260, LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/jeffcyang, or Twitter: http://twitter.com/originalspin.
I went to the Beverly Hills Farmers Market, next to the library. As I alighted my car, the skies were somber, echoing my somber moods. Not knowing what to expect, not having done the registering of voters in a farmer's market, I had several dark thoughts: Will I encounter opposition? Will I encounter apathy? Will I waste my time? All dark thoughts that had no place if I am to convince future voters, I told myself. So, as I walked, my feet got lighter hearing the bamboo pipes type of music by Tinku, aka a family who plays Magical Latin Rythms and I found myself shaking my body, moving my feet, and even swaying my booty.
Okay, I am a large woman so swaying my body is not just an effort but also it attracts others to me. So, I got the attention of Clariece, a 75 year old woman, with a full set of platinum hair. She is excited to be here every Sunday, as she guards the mobile carts and when returned to their storage place behind her table, she hands them over a driver's license, a currency in exchange for the use of the carts for an hour or so.
I lingered by striking a conversation with Clariece, and asked her if she is ready to vote this November. She said no, as she is switching parties. I got excited at the possibility, but in doing this activity, I am mostly a receiver of the shared information and I usually listen. She talked about switching candidates and switching to the better candidate. I just did not expect she would be switching from independent to Republican. But, hey, I am supposed to be stars and stripes today, and I figured it is okay, for every one Republican, I will find two Democrats.
So, I started another dialogue with Letty, who is now selling the CDs of the Tinku, a musical group of father and three sons. Josue is in 9th grade, and his curly hair and a big smile drew me to tell him to enroll in a creative writing class and speed reading when he gets to 10th grade. I told him to go to a community college for the summer and take those courses so he can have an easier time in junior and senior years and be ready for college. He smiled and nodded his head in agreement. Promise?, I asked him. Yes, he said.
And his mom, Letty, a Mexican with an accessible demeanor, started explaining the thirteen songs in the CD, would you like to hear them, like Besame Mucho? Or Yesterday and of course the flamboyant tunes of sambas. And soon, she tells me about Isaac, her 7th grader who is not quite doing well. Why not, I asked? She said he does too much X-box. And here i am again intervening, as a parent, change your rules, have him read five books and for every five books, he gets an hour of X-box, tell him he must do if he will be my next Latino president. Isaac, barely reaching the height of his mom and somewhat evasive before, now appear more engaged. Yes, Isaac, I told him, the world is yours to conquer, do not limit your world or yourself by just doing X-box. Look, how you play your music here and the drums, you brought me joy and my heart is lighter now. I am walking as if I have air shoes. He laughed. Then, Letty asked his son, Cesar to come by and introduce himself to me. "Mom, I am eating my breakfast." His was a plate of chilaquiles, tortilla chips, salsa, onions, cilantro, salsa and cheese.
" No problem, " I said. I can see you later. But of course, Mom Letty is now more engaged talking to me, it occurred to her to ask me what I am doing in the market. " Oh, I am here every Sunday to buy my flowers and my produce. But today, I am registering new voters. This is my job as an American. " She smiled and then called Cesar again and said, Cesar needs to be registered. Who would think that my prolonged conversation with her and after buying three CDs of bamboo piped music, I can actually register my second voter. So, Cesar sat down with the registration form, I reviewed it and promised him it would be taken to the post office. He asked me how long the process would take, I told him a few weeks, but that the most important thing is to exercise his choice, using his heart and not his fears, even if he sees the media fanning the flames of darkness and fearful thoughts. Vote with your heart and mind. He said he knows whom to vote and he cannot wait to vote Obama. Okay, I did not ask who he is voting for, I am simply a non-partisan citizen today doing my duty to be engaged in democracy.
Then, Cece, the market manager calls me and said " Did you see the lady looking for you? I told her you are registering voters from your heart and I asked the other manager not to bother you as you are doing your job from your heart as a citizen." This is the same Cece who just earlier read me the riot act that this is a city - sponsored event and I can only register voters from the sidewalk and I said, Okay, Cece. I will follow your rules. It turns out that she was testing me and because I agreed to her enforcement of the rules, she cut me a slack. Then, Debbie, a beautiful woman with a sunny disposition gives me a big hug and says " Where have you been, I have missed you. " I have been well but today, I am here registering voters. She then said, I need to register as we moved. And so I hand her a registration card, but she is in a hurry and I told her to take it to her nearest post office. Two democrats for one Republican voter, that was my day today at Beverly Hills.
But, the best part of it all was I met a wonderful Mexican family playing bamboo pipes. And of course, since I am the foodie person, I give away dozen mini blueberry muffins, one to a mom who is anxious about her five year old son who cannot go to the nearby school magnet she lives at, which happens to be the best public magnet around. I shared with her my experience in getting my children into public magnets and I told her to have hope always and to keep talking to the principal until he is willing to share what the entrance rules are. I told her that is what i had to do because I was not willing to enroll my children in less than the best public magnet schools, so I persevered and my efforts paid off. She asked me about my children. I told her they are fine and both are living good lives. And then, we recalled how I took one child to a science camp, which happens to be where her five year old son is going to. Our lives intersected, we have the same anxieties, we have the same aspirations, we want our children to do well. Like Letty, like Michelle, like the mother of her five year old son fretting to eat his Nutella crepes, we worry that we have a world safe for our children to be in, safe to thrive. I reassured her they would grow, they would thrive, they just need a lot of love and loving attention.
I went back to where Letty and her family of musicians are and I took Cesar's voter registration form, and I shared my muffins with her family. I felt bad, as i only had two and they were five. But, she thanked me just the same. I too said my thanks and I went to buy my CDs because her husband kept saying thanks that it compelled me to do something to deserve his thanks.
My dear Obama voters, today is a new day for me, I confronted my dark, somber thoughts, did not act on them, consciously decided to spread joy as I register new voters, and as a result, I went home with free casablancas, given by Gary, the flower guy who also ate a muffin I brought. It is a magical market, made more magical by hearing Magical Latin Rythms played and soon, my two hours passed and I went home with three voters registered. It is a new America, and did I share that I also met Matt, a tall young guy in his early thirties who could not contain his enthusiasm for Obama and cannot wait to vote for him in November? Did I mention he thanked me for what I was doing? How neat is that?
And if you are wondering how bamboo piped music sounds like, visit their website, <www.tinkunmusic.com> and they have a CD bundle of six now, each CD has thirteen songs, and it literally transports you to heaven. Yes, even registering voters can be an experience of having a new heaven on earth!
Thank you Senator Barack Obama and Michelle Obama for showing by example how to relate to folks with a full measure of respect, empathy and understanding. I was inspired last night watching a short tape of the Senator in Kuwait receiving standing ovation!! Take care one and all and see you next Sunday in this magical market of harvested goodness!!
I wanted to share what I got in my inbox today, quite impressive..from Thomas Ridley. Notice how much Senator Obama has accomplished, yet for the media pundits, he is someone falsely labeled as with no experience. Look at what he has done.
